Keowee courier. (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, September 01, 1871, Image 1
BOU..'
? psi - r ? ?iip?? m >?..-.
?. SlHHHiMHNI>H?
"TO THINK OWN SELF BK TRUE, AND IT MUST FOLLOW', AS TIIE
BY KEITH, HOYT & CO.
NICHT TDK DA Y; THOU CANS'!? NOT THEN DE FALSE TO AN Y MAN."
VOLUME VJ.-NO 45.
professional Oards._
?'^Attorney and Oou iisellor
' ? Y L AW p
AND
Solicitor in [Eqnity-.,
Will practico in tho Courts o? Law and Equity,
in tho Eighth Judicial Circuit.
OFFICE IN TUE COURT HOUSE,
Walhalla.-South Carolina.
Nov. 1. 1870 3 Iv
TUGS. M. WILKES,
A T T O lt N E Y A T 1, A W
-AND
Solicitor in ZE?Liii-ty.
-ALSO,
United States Commissioner,
For tho Circuit and District Courts of thc Uni
ted States for South Carolina?
fi??r* Omen os THE Counv HOUSE SQUAUE.
WALHALLA. S. C,
July 22. 1870 40 ly
J. P. REED, ) ( W. C. KEITH,
Anderson C. II. j \ Wal huilai
HEED & KEITH,
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
A f;n
Solicitors in lEqaaity.,
Have rcnowed their Co-partnership in the prac
tico of Law, and extended it to all Civil und
Criminal business in the Counties of Ocunce
and Piekons.
ALSO,
A lil, nUSINE*S IN TUE UNlTEn STATES COURTS,
^,;rnri*?- Offico on Public Square, 1
tJBoiii Walhalla, S- C.
July 18. 18G9. ' 41 tf
fi. MCGOWAN, lt. A. THOMPSON,
Abbeville, S. C. Walhalla, S. C.
M'GOWAN & THOMPSON,
ATTORNEYS AT LAW,"
WALHALLA, S. C.,
Will givo prompt attention to all business
ooo lided to them in tho State, Comity, and
United States Courts.
^ OFFICE IN THE COURT HOUSE.
Tho Juniorpartner, MR THOMPSON, ?ill also
practice in tho Courts of Pickens, Greenville
und Anderson. .
January. 1870 tf
"TOSEPH J. NORTON,
, Attorney a>jt Law,
W WAX Bl A BJ A, S. C.
d
? All business for Pickens County left with
J. E. HAGOOD, ESQ.,
PiCK?NS ?. aa.,
WILL DE PROMPTLY ATTENDED TO
Ootobcr 20, 1808 4 tf
t. II. WU ITS' KR. Wilt TN EU SVMMES
WIUTNER & SYMMES,
Attorneys at Law,
WALHALLA, S. C.
SiaSf* Oflico on the Public Square. "Vx?fl
February 1, 1870 16 tf
S. I). GOODLETT,"
Attorney at JL a\v
AND
SOLICITOR IIV EQITITY,
HAS LOCATED
AT THE
jilCW TOWN OF PICKENS, S. C.
Nov. 10. 18(58 7 tf
AL'X. S. ERWIN, V ( O. C. BENTLY
Athens Cia. ) ] . Clnyton, Qa.
ERWIN & BENTLY,
Attorneys eut JLa/w,
WILL PRACTICE IN PARTNERSHIP
, IN TUE COUNTY OF RAI JUN,
if? STATE OF GEORGIA.
Oct 5, I860 62 tf
WHITNER7
^ ?TTAV?N0 located If} WlllUVlln. offore his
f| .Professional %?mm io np pi f J8 PP* Of
\p? placo and fturrounoing-count ry,
?^0pFipi?.--BIEMANN,S HOTEL,
Feb. h WI M l7
From (he Land wa Lon:. .
LIME AS A FM?rriE.IZUK.
HY MOE. ISLA Kl;, OF DAVIDSON COLLEGE
Having been frequently asked thc value of.
limo ns u fertilizer, ?nd requested to state ?Ls
specific uses ia thc economy of Ibo farm, 1
pro, J.J to Bum up the best established prac
tice,. Jul ts devi ved from science, and con
firmed by thc experience of thc most judicious
authorities on tho subject.
Limo is a substance familiiarly known to
all our fanning communities, ?nd is every
where valued for its varied and important ap
plications-so valued that some have regard
ed it "the basis of all good husbandry ;" and
even so excellent a judge as Prof. Johnston
declares it to be "thc most valuable and most
extensively used of all thc mineral substances
that have ever been inado available in practi
cal agriculture." A fertilizer that can claim
such n high encomium from such a source,
deserves to have its merits better understood
-its nature, ?ts modes of action, its practi
cal results more thoroughly comprehended.
Wc propose to confine our remarks to such
points only as aro applicable to carbonate of
lime, and its derivatives, such as quick lime,
slaked lime, ?to.
In thc form in which ?t is usually offered
in the market, and in which, therefore, ii, is
most generally available for the fanner, lime
is a caustic alkali, (burnt lime.) and this caus
tic quality is thc main cause of its activity
and efficiency in thc service of tho skillful
agriculturist. Tho food we cat is not in a
condition to nourish our bodies as it comes in
its crude state from the harvest field- it
must bo cooked, masticated, and even when
swallowed it cannot be taken up by the blood,
und distributed through tho system for the
nourishment of our bodice, till it has been
acted on by the gastric and other juices-it
must bc "digested." So with the plant ; its
food, too, must, in sonic sense, bc cooked,
masticated and digested, before it can be ta
ken up a, nd assimilated by thc living organ
ism. /
Caustic lime is thc cook that prepares the
food, and tho gastric juice that digests thc
nourishment for thc plant. Hut while this
digestion operation is, perhaps, in the great
majority of cases- where limo is artificially
applied, its most important function, il must
not bo foiuofton/bat this is n-.t its r???.'y ?db" >j
limo is not only tho cook that prepares other
food for the growing crop, but is itself essen
tial to tho nourishment of the plant, entering
into its composition, constituting ail impor
tant part of its inorganic elements, besides
performing other valuable offices to bc dis
cussed as we proceed.
These geneva! statements are sufficient to
suggi-st-tho nature and character of thc work
which lime accomplishes for the practical fir
mer, and to show, in a general Way. the foun
dation of its groat reptation as a mineral fer
tilizer. Hut let us descend lo particulars.
There are live modes of aol ion by which
mineral manures may prolit tho growi og
plant when applied io thc soil.
1st. They may themselves become food for
the growing cvop.
2nd. They may digest and preparo?Jjj^oijd
already io tin: soil. ^^pMj^k
ord They may absorb ^iseoTfl^JfcpHBPrK
from thc atmosph?re, and rot dt) tliTufforthe
fut uve use of the plant.
4th. They destroy or neutralize substances
in thc soil which arc poisonous or injurious
to thc crop.
6 th. They mn y i lil pro VO thc mechanical
condition of the soil.
Some mineral manures perform one of thc
offices, and some another, but l'une accom
plishes theil) all.
In regard to the first mode of action, chem
ical analysis settles thc question; it shows
that lime is present in tho ashes of all our
field crops, and that ?ii some of them, as clo
ver, peas, turnips, &o, it isa principil i ogro
dient. Heneo lime, if it be naturally def)
cicnt, may be usefully added to thc soil sim
ply as a food for thc crop, and, if wholly want
ing, its addition becomes an absolute necessi
ty, as no crop could bo matured without it.
In regard to tho second point, lime may
bc considered as a specific ; tho most imjior
tant service which ?t gcncvclly renders to thc
plant, when applied in largo quantities, is the
digestion und preparation of other manures,
which, though found in the seil arc not in a
condition to bo absorbed by tho roots, and
thus mudo available, for iminedirte use.
13y ita caustio and alkalino properties, lime
facilitates tho decomposition of all vegetablo
and animal mutter, liberating their nutritive
clements, and converting insoluble, into solu
ble ooinpounds, thus rendering them capable
of being absorbed and appropriated.
Even tho inert mineral musses of tho soil
do not escape tho digestivo action of lime :
felspar and other minerals containing tho sil
icates Of potash and soda, moro roadily sur
render, in the presence of limo, their treas
urea of potash and soda; and these ulkalies
in their turn help to convert thc insolublo in
to solublo oilicatcs, and thus supply to our cc
rcnls thc element that support their stems,
enablcing them to bear up against storm and
wind ; it is the absence of this soluble silica,
which limo ossisfs in digesting, which often
oausos our grain orops to full to tho ground
before they oro fully matured.
As to tho third peint, tho absorption of
fertilizing nlomonts from tho air, limo, both
direotly and indirectly, by its own notion, ond
by its pulverizing effect upon compact soils,
oxerts a highly beneficial influence. True,
it docs not, liko plaster of Paris, absorb am
monia direotly from tho ntmophcro, butwhot
is quito us much to tho fanner's interest, it
coiivotts tho ammonia which moy bo forming
jn. ?hp r)?U, into nitric uoid, nod thus fixes ifs
valuable eleme'pfa so OS to proverb psoapo jnto
the ?jr. MoreWri ye b^ryo l\ft>highest ou
' SSA'S
thority for saying that when organic matter is
decouipo.su-g, in tho soil, nm mot) ii is genera
ted by absorbing nitrogon from tbo ?ir, ?mi
thus, ns wo have seon tn nt lime promotes this !
d?composition, it promutcsulso, thc formation I
of these most valuable mnniMCS from atinos- j
phcrio eietnotits.
In tho fourth place, it is well known that
limo will counteract thc injuiious acids, both
organic and inorganic, which collect in damp
soils where much vegetable matter is decom
posing, and which render thc sour and unfa
vorable to successful cultivation. It is of tho
nature of un alkali, like lime, to neutralize
these acids and mnko these sour lauds sweet
and mellow. Limo also decomposes and
counteracts tho injurious sulphates of iron, |
of magnesia, anti of alumina, all of which
Sometimes ?bound to thc serious injury of ev
eiy variety of field crops, and often disappoint
thc hopes of tho industrious laborer.
lu tho fifth place, that limo affects the
mechanical constitution of tho soil, would be
naturally inferred from what we have seen of
its power to decompose tho earthly matters
which contain thc valuable minoru I clements
of thc soil.
Lime, by pulverizing thc solid particles,
renders thc laud more looso and friable, at
tho same tinto that it liberates tho valuable
stores of nutritious matter locked up in them.
Hy its chemical action it makes stiff and
heavy clays moro light and porous, while its
mechanical effect is to render more compact !
tho texture of looser soils
Limo is thus the busy agent of thc farmer,
collecting, pulverizing, elaborating, digo-ting 1
whatever it can lind in air, earth or water,
and diligently exacting tribute alike from the
animal, vegetable and mineral kingdoms, for
.ho usc and support of the growing plant : it
is not only itself u food, but it also acts as a
digester, an absorber, a neutralizer and a me
chanical i.ii prover. What inore could bc ex
pected iron) a single fertilizer '! This surely
isa great deal, but it is not all.
Arnot g tho effects of lime Prof. Jobsten
enumerates several particulars in which it
modifies even the character of the vegetation.
For install?e, it akers thc natural production .
of the soil by its tendency to extirpate cer
tain coarse grasses which infest some locali
ties, and prevent thc growth of richer and
more mit i it ive fluids.
.'lt kills," bc says,"health, moss, and sour
.?ml li....'>T i.. ...-?, '?.?iijia up U n .. cet ami
tender herbage,mixed with white and red clo
vcr, more greedily i alen and more nourishing,
to the cattle. Indeed all fodder, whether
natural or artificial, is said to bc sounder and
more nourishing, when grown upon laud to
which lime has heon abundantly applied." -
lt is said also that it "improves the quality
of almost every cultivated crop :" all kinds of
grains, peas, turnips, p?tateos, &o., aro found
to be more suitable, for fond when grown on
well limed soils. It is claimed that it also
"hastens the maturity of the crop," causing
the small grains to mature froid len to four
teen days earlier on limed soils than on (hose
unlinied. The quantity of limo necessary to
these results when applied to cultivated lands,
depends upon so many conditions of soil, cli
mate and cultivation that no general rule can
be given.
Wo learn from experiments carefully con
ducted in England, that "the quantity of
pure lime contained in thc crops produced
upon ono acre during four years rotation
amounted, on an average, to 242 lbs." This
gives us about sixty pounds portiere, actually
removed from the soil every year in composi
tion with the vegetable nial ter, and which
was necessary to its growth and healthy dc
vclopment. Wo thus sec how much of this
element may be needed for the actual nourish
vient ol' the plants, and how rapidly soils, not
abundtilltly supplied by nature, must become
exhausted of this essential ingredient, ii' it bc
not artificially applied.
Under such circumstances lands, which
otherwise might bc highly productive, may
become sterile and useless.
Put this statement only includes thc limo
necessary for a single one of thc five uses
specified above, ?nd that one ordinarily de
manding a less quantity than either of the
others. If to this be added thc amount suf
ficient for all thc other purposes, wo may ap
preciate moro fully tho quantities sometimes
profitably employed in eountrios whoro agri
culture is oarricd to tho highest perfection.
According to Possingault "soil which is with
out a considcrublo proportion of tho calcare
ous clement,.never possesses a high degree of
fertility."
A simplo calculation will show thatwboro
no limo is prcscutin tho laud, it will require
about-IOU bushels per acre to give the small
proportion of only one per cent, of lime for
a depth of 12 inches below tho surface.
Pew soils aro thus wholly devoid of limo,
and much smaller quantities will sullico for
all tho purposes of agriculture. Bossingault
informs us, that, in England, clay lands re
ceive tho largo amount of from 240 to 300
bushels of hine per aero, and lighter lands
from 1?0 to 200 bushels. This must bc but
onco for a term of many years. In Franco
tho amount applied is greatly less, about 00
or 70 bushels per acre, at intervals of soven
or eight years. Johnston tells us that in
Great Hntuin a doso is on an avcrego from 7
to 10 bushels, per aero, a year. In Flanders,
whoro agriculture has achieved its greatest
triumphs, tho quantity used is not so largo,
only 10 or 12 bmhels every threo years.
In this country tho experience is similar to
Ku ropo.
A practical funner in Schuylkill oounty,
Pennsylvapia,writes: "Thoquantity (of limo)
depends on tho kind of soil and after treat
ment. Heavy ohiy oan boar 100 or moro
bushels to tho nero, while, on light soils, from
60 to 80 bushels will onSwor yory woll."
Another report from Chester county, Pon.
sylvania, says that, 'limo is mostly spread on
thc sod ut tho rate of 30 to GO bushels to tho
nore, once in each course of crops," ?ind to
show 11 io practical results, it is added, "near
ly ?ll our land for miles around, was formerly
Worn out old fields, which would produco
nothing, but thc application of limo unlock
ed the hidden treasures of the soil und ren
dered available, as food for plants, thc inert
organic matter which it contained. This, ac
companied by Judicious cultivation and prop
Ci lOtation of crops, hus ontirely ohanged thc
appearance .of or?r neighborhood. Scarce!}*
an old field is now to bo found." I Iou. T. G.
Clemson, who was formerly connected with
thc Agricultural department of thc United
States Government, remarks that so small a
quantity as a bushel to thc acre has produc
ed good effects. j
Governor Hammond, of South Carolina,
ono of tho most successful, as well as intelli
gent planters thc South has ever had, was
accustomed to boat lime, in the condition of
shell marl, twelve miles un tho Savannah i
river, for thc use of his plantation, and np- 1
ply it at the rate of 200 bushels per acre.
The writer has witnessed on his light, sandy,
pine lands, thus limed, a yield of 38 bushels
of corn to the ? rc, while the same kind of
blind in an adjacent.field,not limed,wouldscarco
ly nvcragc 10 bushels. These statements show,
ut once, thc importance of lime as a fertili
zer, und the marked dillicrenco in thc quin- j
lily which experienoe h as show u to bebest suit
ed to tho soil nnd climate of tho several
countries mentioned, and points out thc ne
cessity for a thorough understanding of tho
whole subject, in order to a judicious applica
Mon of it. To apply to the loose and sandy
soil of Flanders, tlie 200 or 800 bushels, per
acre, which the Englishman finds desirable
on his compact clay lands, or on his cold and
tenacious heath meadows, would bo a sad
mistake.
Enough has been said to show that, com
paratively, large quantities of lime are found
to bo useful in thc experience of all tl cse
countries, whero scientific agriculture has
successfully worked out tim highest practical
results ; but ouch individual must reflect for
himself upon tho principles involved, and
upon their application to his particular case.
It may bo said, in a general way, that larger
portions may bc profitably udded to still' and
heavy cloys than to light and sandy localities
ti lyet and tnaishy lands, than to dry and niel
li, \V;--5o,r:b 10 ?**?.?(? ri rich loam, in which veg
etable mater abounds, than to poor and ex
hausted fields. Indeed, as the primary ob
ject of using limo is to digest the organic
substances already present, rather than to act
as food for the plant, there being generally
enough for that purpose naturally in thc soil,
it becomes a point of the first importance to
have this organic matter abundantly present,
and wherever this condition is fully met, os
by'the roots, grass ami leaves of freshly clear
ed ground, or by green manures ploughed in,
or by barn yard compost, wo may confidently |
use thc lime with a liberal hand, but if these
conditions bc not complied with, damage and
disappointmcntJwill follow, instead of tho rich
rewards anticipated Moro lime, also, may
bc safely applied in cold, than hot climates,
and to land subject to deep tillage, than where
ploughing is always shallow ; for it is plain
that a less quantity will snllicc to supply the
soil, if only four inches deep, than if it bc
ploughed 12 inches. Wherever, then, a
system of high culture is proposed, both the
ory and practice suggest that wc beginnt first
with a heavy liming, proportioning thoquan
t i ty to the quality of the soil, and especially
to the amount ol' organic mutter it contains,
and that this be followed at the close of ev
ery rotation of crops, embracing a period of
several years each, with lighter Innings The
Flemish rule, which gives the smallest quan
tity of any of the examples quoted above,
requires 10 or 12 bushels, per acre, at the
close of every three years, making an aver
age of 3 or 4 bushels annually. This in
Viandera yields the best results for the invest
ment. In France and England, experience
bas indicated a much larger amount.
It need scarcely bc added that the ultimate
net profits of liming must depend, among
Other things, upon tho cheapness-mid facili
ty with which limo can bc procured at thc
required locality.
All these points must be oarbfully weighed,
if wo would accurately balance tuc aoOOUUt
of loss and gain.
Hut ono thing is certain, that wc of tho
desolated South aro hopelessly ruined as an
agricultural peoplo, if wo do not now avail
ourselves promptly of all thoso artificial aids
which 'aro applicable to our case, and which
have combined to make other countries agri
culturally great. Tho same practical Wisdom,
energy und earnestness, which hitiyo made tho
marshes and sandy plains of Flanders the
gurdon of Europe, can convert tho abused
I and wasted regions of tho South back again
to even moro than their primeval fertility and
beauty.
If tho application is to bo made to clay or
boggy and peaty lands, or to such as have
largo supplies of inert vogctablo matter, tho
limo should bc slaked and applied immediate
ly, in a caustic state. When it is 'cquirod
on lighter lands, it should bo "uir-slakcd," or
allowed to slake slowly and spontaneously, by
absorbing moisture from thc atmosphere, as
this gives it in a finer powder and somewhat
milder form, and therefore, less Hablo to in
juro tho tonde: herbage, but for general pur
poses, especially when tho soil is light and
poor, it is host that tho limo should bo com
posted with rich vogctablo mould, or such
decayed vegetable matter as may bo availa
ble : in this form it may bo moro regularly
scattered, and its caustic power being some
what masked in tho oompost, it is less liable
to do injury, at tho same timo that it acts
moro promptly and efficiently upon tho grow
ing crop ; this inoreasod uiBoienoy in the
composted state is due to the fact that tho
r
digestive processes which limo ordinarily car
ries on in tiic soil, have already begun in tho
compost heaps, thus offering food for ready
absorption. On this account, too, thc longer
it lias been in this state thc more fertilizing
it becomes. It may bc added also, with ben
eficial results to composts of fresh animal
matters, as it so controls tho fermenting pro
cess ns to causo the valuable elements to forniy
compounds winch oro not subject to evapora
tion, while, if lime bad not been present,these
same clements would have entered into com
binations which aro highly volatile and liable
to escape: it should never bc mixed, howev
er, with animal manures which are airead//
decomposed, as it expels tho gaseous fertili
zers existing in tho mass before the lime is
added. When properly composted with veg
etable Qr animal matter, limo may be applied
just as any other rich manure directly to the
growing crop, whether it be tender grass, or
clover, or grains of any kind : but it* it is to
bo applied iu thc condition of slaked limo it
will not produce its full effect ot once upon
tho soil, and, therefore, os long an interval os
possible should intervene between the plant
ing of thc crop which it is intended to bene
fit-as, for instance, in the carly fall for thc
benefit of winier and spring grain.
Some authorities, ns Warring's I?lemon's
of Agriculture, and tho American Muck
Hook, by Browne, with much plausibility,
urge thc uso of a .'lime and salt mixture" as
containing moro valuable qualities, both for
manuring and digesting, thau limo itself.
This mixture is obtained by slaking fresh
burnt lime with water thoroughly saturated
with salt, using the materials in thc proportion
of three bushels of lime to one of salt.
The limo decomposes tho salt, giving tts
chloride of lime and carbonate of soda, both
valuable agents in promoting thc fertility of
thc soils. To secure tho more perfect com
bination of the lime and salt, thc brine should
not all be applied ot once, but nt intervals of
a da}' or two, in order to give time for thc
changes to take place moro thoroughly ; und
even ofttr the s'aking is completed, ten or
twelve days should elapse before tho mixture
is used. There can be doubt of tho value of
this compound, especially in cases whore salt
would bo n desirable manure on its own ac
count.
For evident rcosons lime, when intended
to benefit tho land generally, should always
boos evenly dis?'tbut.otf). and os thoroughly
i iieorp?M m. ..' ..t.i. tho Sun .... t,voatulc; tv
should not, however, bc ploughed in very
deeply as it has naturally a constant tendency
to descend in the soil ; and because, also,
while near thc surface, it is moro costly reach
cd by tho air, which is essential to those di
gestive functions which constitute its chief
Value.
When quick-lime is added in largo quan
tities to soils naturally wet. and which have
nut been sufficiently drained, thc lime may
form into a mortar, and become hardened to
such fi degree as to obstruct tho free passage
of water and air, as well ns thc roots of thc
plants. Undi r such circumstances, of course,
the lime would bc an injury, and the remedy
for thc evil, thorough draining. On soils
which aro light, dry and poor in vegetable
matter, a heavy application of limo would
also provo injurious by rendering the land
too open, and by its chemical effect causing
the crop to "burn," ns it is called. In each
of these cases if the lime be added in a well
composted .stifle, nil thc evil consequences arc
nt once averted, at thc samo timo that addi
tional supplies of warmth mid nourishment
arc given to stimulate tho growth of vegeta
tion. Indeed, thc opinion is maintained by
some tlmt lime may be indefinitely added
without injury, provided we, at thc same
time, proportionally increase tho organic ele
ments of the soil. Whether this be correct
or not, it is certainly true that what is ordi
narily spoken of ns thc exhausting effect of
lime, is only the effect of tho larger crops
which it causes thc soil to yield, and which,
of coui.so, requires moro of thc clements ol
thc soil for its growth and maturity-what
is needed under such circumstances is not
less lime, but moro organic food. It fre
quently lins happened that even so valuable
a fertilizer as lime has been wholly abandon
ed in particular lucidities in consequence ol
unskillful applications, or hasty infercneef
from p;ut'ial ex pos tmen t.:. Of course where
nature abundantly supplies tho soil with th if
important element, artificial additions would
bc waste of time and money. So, in like
manner, when limo is applied, ns in some
paris of langland, ut the rate of from 40 tc
(JO bushels to tho nero at tho end of each ro
tation of crops, embracing a period of 4 or 5
years, it would bo no argument against 'he
moderato uso of this ngont, if nftor a lapso ol
yours, theso largo additions should produce nc
scnsiblo effects whatever in consequoneo ol
tho soil having become fully saturated. And,
again, tho time which is required for unoom
postcd limo to toko its effect upon tho soil if
a fruitful 8ouroo of disoouragcinont and often
abandonment of this valuable fertilizer. An
experimental farmer, reporting his results foi
thc first year writes, "I opplicd 100 busheb
(of limo) tt tho nero on n corn stubblo and
planted again in corn, but saw very littlo prof
it to tho crop." In reference to tho saint
soil and the sumo liming at tho end of tlx
third year ho wtitce : "For tho past two sea
sons I hnvo mowed tho finest of grass." Limo,
though a most eflicionl and vnluablo fertili
zor, is slow In developing its finest results
indeed it soarccly exhibits fully \tt true char
acter, unless when applied in tho composted
stnto, till tho scoot.d or third ^oar after itt
application, t
Limo is also distinguished for the penna
nonoo of its effcots as a fertilizer. Thoro ii
known to chemists a mysterious power calloc
1 "disposing affinity/' for tho wont of ? bettet
J name, by which ono ?ubstanco while iu th?
1 presence of another, is induced or influencer'
to enter into combinations which it would not
form in thc absence of tho influencing body.
This is the tit? turo of many of tho changes
brought about in thc soil by lime, and it is
by virtuo of this disposing power that it con
tinues to act and retain its peculiar qualities
asa fertilizer. Tho permanence of its action
is further iucrcoscd by its slight solubility ;
at tho ordinary temperature it tokes about
760 pounds of water to dissolve ono of limo
even in thc caustic stato, and still less can bo
i dissolved after it has been acted on by tho
i carbonic acid of thc air. Thus it remoiua
I for a long time in thc soil performing its im
! portant offices. It is said to produce sensible
j effects upon tho crop after tho lapse of 20 or
. JIU years, and some insist that a good supply,
once added to thc soil, never wholly ceases to
j be felt. This persistence in thc effect of limo
: is a high merit, aud ono which insures to
; thc farmer, sooner or later, if judiciously
used, an ample interest upon his investment.
We have already seen that when lime is to
bo applied in thc slaked condition, except in
thc case of stiff clays or rich vegetable
I mould, it should be slowly "oirslnkcd," bc
! cause, in the latter case, it is not only moro
completely pulverized, but also of a milder
j character, as thc caustic quality of about one
j half of it is neutralized by combination with tho
carbonic acid of thc nir. As n labor saving
consideration, this slaking process should toko
place in tho field, since, thereby, from one
fourth to one half the weight, und a large in
crease of tho bulk, etiui-cd by tho slaking,
will bc saved from transportation.
To effect this it may be piled up in heaps
and covered with earth in the field, and left
till it completely crumbles to powder: tho
covering of earth protects it fi om heavy rains
which might convert it into mortar, and also
i fi-om too free access of air which tends to
.chango it back into tho shite in which it was
before it was burnt. When prepared for
distribution this may bc accomplished by
drawing it cut from a cart into little heaps,
from live to sereu yards apart, and in quanti
ties proportioned lo the amount wc desire to
apply, per acre, ofter which it can be evenly
scattered. Some to accomplish thc distribu
tion more regularly, check off tho laud into
little squares of convenient size, and apply
ing a given quantity to each square.
Such is a general statement of thc facts that
seem to best establ' .bcd in regard to limo asa
fcitilizer. .
. 1> mou hn ,1SftfM' ?- ?nnc'?810"/!0*" COnvO--"
nient reference, to sum up thc most impor
tant points of a practical character.
Id mc, then, is useful to thc finner ns food
for his crop-as a digester of the nounal,
vegetable and mineral manures in Iiis soil
as nu nbsorbent.iodircctly,of valuable manures
from tho atmosph?re-ns a neutralizer of in
jurious acids and other poisonous compounds
-as r pulverizer of his st i fl clay soils, and
ns a general stimulant which improves both
thc quantity arid quality of his produce.
The quantity of lime to bo used depends
on thc character of the soil-on tho abun
dance of organic matter-on the kind of cul
tivation-on the character of the climate
on the quantity already pr?sent in thc soil,
and on thc cost of lime in thc market whero
it is used.
Thc modo of application depends on the
object chiefly aimed at. If to pulverizo com
pact tenacious cfajj/ lands, thc caustic, water
slaked condition ia best; if to act upon the
mineral matter of lighter soils tho milder,
air slaked form will do tho work; but if to
digest organic matter, or to serve thc general
purposes of a manure to enrich tho soil and
give it warmth and energy-lo stimulate tho
plant and promote a prompt development, or
whatever else may bc doomed necessary, tho
composted btate is greatly preferred.
Hence, every farmer should have his cat
tic lots and horse stalls abundantly supplied
with leaves, straw, grass, and organic matter
of every kind, to bc trampled by his stock,
and ultimately thrown into compost hcop9
with limo and vegetable mould, or peaty
matter, which will absorb all tho gases that
might otherwise escape Tho quantity of
limo for theso purposes need not be great.-?
Wc have seen that, though in many cases
largo amounts may bo profitably applied
where it cnn bc cheaply obtained, yet even
very small quantities aro highly useful, and
experience indicates that tbeso small quanti
titics, frequently repeated, oro moro benefi
cial titan larger amounts applied but onco.
Let each farmer then do what ho cnn, cvon
if his offerts ore confined to a few norcs, for
tho timo bas como when our pcoplo must
abandon the old-system of extensivo planting,
and concentrate their time, energy, and means
upoii comparatively small nreas of land,
which, to bo remunerative, must bo stimula
ted to its highest oapacity by all tho applian
ces of scienco and art.
MISCEGENATION.-In tho Atlanta District;
Court on Wednesday, fivo miscegenation
onfloH wcro dispo&ed of. Thc Judge sentenced
Williom Hibbs, a whito mon, convicted of
living in fornication with a negro women, to
poy a (ino of one thousand dollars, or to bo
imprisoned in tho onunty jail for tho term of
I six months. Martha Johnson, Hibbs'negro
i paramour, to pay two hundred and fifty dol
lars, or threo months imprisonmen Wil
liam Harris, negro, convicted of fornication
with a whito woman, to pay two hundred and
fifty dollars, or six months on tho publie
works. Mury Harris, bis whito pnramour,
to pay one thousand dollars, or MX months
on tue publie work?.
jig* Wo lenrn that tho Hon. H. B. Car
penter has gono to Vonsyl vants, to assist in
stumping tho Btsto for tho Domoorntt?, in tho
fall compaign for Ptato officers Tho De
moornoy thom have accepted tho "New Do
parturo" as tho bfud? of vueir opciaiiuiH
SUCOOHS to thom.